Myth of Madness
by TheYellowCup
Summary: "This is a nightmare..." When powerful plans get into the hands of evil, the only result is chaos. Who will be the savior of this reign of terror? This is the New Pokémon Era. OldrivalShipping, SpecialShipping, TwinleafShipping, FranticShipping, MangaquestShipping, SoulsilverShipping.
1. Chapter 1 Prologue

**Chapter 1 – Prologue**

They say there's a myth, that with the right ingredients, the legend of all legendaries would be born; a being even greater than Arceus; the true Lord of Pokémon. In order for this extraordinary creature to rise, one would need to collect DNA samples from specific legendaries. Once the ingredients have been acquired, drop them all into the boiling hot lava of Stark Mountain, and the beast will wake from it's slumber. Thousands have tried, thousands have failed, and millions have succumbed to madness. It was then known as the Myth of Madness. After it's prime, it was considered to be a taboo to speak about it, so it was soon forgotten. Until now.

Deep in the forests surrounding Pallet Town, there hides a father and daughter. The father, a sturdy and tall man, with scruffy chocolate brown hair, matching circle beard, light brown eyes, and smooth olive skin. Wearing a black sweatshirt with camo-pants and dark brown leather boots. His daughter had inherited her father's chocolate brown hair, and her long straight locks reached just below her shoulder and was styled in a side braid. However she had bright cyan blue eyes and milky white skin. She was dressed in a similar fashion as her father, a black tank top, a red skirt and dark brown leather boots. Hiding behind some bushes, the father whispered, "Remember what I taught you sunshine, lay low and stay silent,"

"Got it Dad," the little girl whispered back as she extended her bow and arrow. They were both eyeing a deerling with a distance of 30 meters. The daughter squinted her eyes in concentration and remained complete control over her bow. The deerling was calmly minding it's own business and eating the grass. But suddenly, the deerling's head shot up and looked towards the pair, it's eyes fixated on the little girl's. In that single second, the little girl released her arrow and pierced the deer's heart.

"Ha ha ha! That's my little sunshine," the father laughed as he ruffled his daughter's hair. As the two walked towards their fallen prey, the father reminded his daughter, "Now Leaf, you remember what I told you about hunting right? You only kill-"

"-If it's absolutely necessary," Leaf finished as she gently stroked the deerling's head, "I know Dad,"

"Ha ha ha!" The father deeply laughed, "I'm proud of you Leaf, not many 11 year olds can hunt as good as you,"

"I've had a good teacher,"

"Well, your good teacher thanks you for being a good student," the father replied as both of them chuckled, "Come on, let's go back home. I'll be making stew tonight!"

"_You're_ cooking again?" Leaf remarked as her father heaved the dead deerling over his shoulder,

"What? I'm not that bad...am I?" He asked as he scratched the back of his head with goofy smile,

"Last night, you tried to make salad and you set the kitchen on fire," Leaf pointed out as they started to head back to town,

"I was trying out some new techniques I saw Chef Pagliaccio do!" The father retorted,

"Chef Pagliaccio was tossing beef, not vegetables!"

"Okay. Fine. I see your point, but I don't want to burden you with making dinner again,"

"It's alright Dad, really!" Leaf replied, "Oh look, it's Mr Hender!" The duo had come back to civilization and were passing Pallet Town's local bakery,

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the Greens," Mr Hender, the local baker, greeted. Mr Hender was a round kind of man, the kind that you would see wearing a bowler hat and had a thick moustache who wouldn't stop smiling. He was in his forties, although he looked as if he was twice his age. There wouldn't be a single person in town who didn't know Mr Hender. Not because he was the town's only baker, but because he was probably the most loudest and bubbliest person you could ever meet. "How was today's catch?" He inquired,

"This one was done by little Leaf 'ere," the father explained as Leaf grinned proudly,

"That big guy? You? Shot him? No!" Mr Hender exclaimed,

"Yes!" Leaf shouted as all three of them laughed,

"You'll grow up to be a fine woman Leaf," Mr Hender said as he pat her head, "Here's your daily bread, it's not much," Mr Hender handed the father a small basket of freshly baked poffins,

"It's plentiful Sam," the father thanked as he put his hand on Mr Hender's shoulder,

"Business hasn't been booming recently, probably because of the big incident in Saffron," Mr hender sighed,

"What happened in Saffron?" Leaf asked her father as she tugged on his pants,

"Just a lil something," her father replied,

"That damn Giovanni," Mr Hender spat,

"Cheer up Sam! Why don't I go buy you a drink next friday eh?" The father offered as Mr Hender gave a weak smile,

"Thanks Carl, but I doubt Marianne would let me go, especially since we've got the twins to look after now,"

"Till next time then!" Carl cheered as both men laughed,

"Tell next time, my good friend, till next time. Good bye!" Mr Hender called out as the father and daughter continued to walk back home. On their way, they passed by Ms Rivera-Gonzalez, the florist,

"_Buenas tardes mis chicos pequeñas!_ I've got some new flowers and they are _muy bieno_," Ms Rivera-Gonzales greeted in her usual thick spanish accent. Ms Rivera was a widow, she lost her husband to the terrible water incident of '93. Despite her old age, she still lives her life as if she was 20. Her love of flowers helped her overcome her grief. Because of her immense passion, the townspeople gave her the nickname: The Wild Flower. She would always be seen wearing similar clothing that would consist of a bandana wrapped around her large frizzy brown hair, a loose off the soulders white top, a black sash around her waist, and a long flowing purple skirt.

"Do you have my favorite flowers today?" Leaf eagerly asked as she looked around her flower cart,

"Ooh, not today _chica_," she pouted as she rubbed Leaf's head, "Why not try these _muy bonito_ pink daises _chica_?" Leaf took a glance, twirled it around, and shrugged her shoulders,

"Come on bud, they're beautiful," Carl said as he pat Leaf's back. Still slightly disappointed, Leaf shrugged her shoulders once again. Noticing this, Ms. Rivera bent down till she was at eye level with Leaf,

"Look at me _chica_, I know you're _muy muy muy triste_ because your favorite flowers aren't here, _lo siento mami_. But why don't I promise you the next time I go restock, I will personally go and get you your flowers, _si_?" She suggested in a gentle voice as Leaf nodded her head with excitement, "I'll even promise with the pinky _chica_." After wrapping their pinkies around the other and made the eternal oath, Carl and Leaf took off once again. Carrying the large bouquet of pink daises, Leaf started to admire the pink plants. Soon they reached a small little house. It was a quaint little home, with a small front porch, wooden framed windows, and a little red brick chimney. Her father went in to drop off the deerling and came back out. Facing the sunset, Leaf twirled the bouquet in one hand and grabbed her father's in the other,

"See bud? It's not so bad right?" Carl said as they began to walk down a leafy path,

"Not so bad at all," Leaf replied, taking a small whiff of the flowery scent,

"Leaf, your Mum would've been very proud of you today," Carl told her as she looked up at him,

"Thanks Dad," she replied as she smiled, "Hey Dad? Could you tell me a story about Mum?"

"Another one?"  
"Please!"

"Oh alright then. Hm...let me think of a good one...ah! I remember! It was when we first met. Back when your mum and I were tweens. There would always be pokémon battles everywhere you went, it meant everything back then. Although it seems to be dying down right now. Anyways, I was a pretty big competitor back in the day, never lost a match in my life. Then one day, whilst I'm traveling to Cerulean City, I bump into this klutz of a girl. She has the nerve to tell me to mind where I'm going when _she_ was clearly at fault. In frustration, I challenge her to a pokémon battle. Never losing a battle before, I was confident I would win. Especially since her pokémon seemed fairly weak. However I was proven wrong. It didn't take her long till she wiped out my entire team. I still remember the exact words she said after she beat me. _You're not so bad, pansy. My name's Genevieve, remember it_. And I did. Soon after, I happened to run into her again at Cerulean City. At the time I couldn't stand her guts at all, so I was quite aloof with her. But then we soon became traveling partners after realizing we were heading in the same direction. Over time, we got to know each other more, and we found out how well our team dynamics were, and before we knew it, we had fallen in love. Oh look, we're 'ere," Carl said as they reached a clearing at the edge of a cliff. Right by the edge was a headstone engraved with a bauhinia flower and the words: _In memory of Genevieve Bellerose-Green, a wonderful wife and a marvelous mother_. Leaf laid down the pink daises and said,

"I miss her, even though I've never met her," she hugged her father's arm tightly,

"Don't worry sunshine, just remember, nothing is ever a mistake." He gently said back. Hours passed by and they spent their time talking about their day and anything new that's happened with Genevieve.

Soon, the two said their goodbyes and went back home. Gathered round a small table, the duo were eating a fresh bowl of mouth-watering stew, "This looks amazing sunshine,"

"If you had cooked tonight, we would've had another fire,"

"Ha ha ha ha! That would be true!" Carl merrily laughed as they started to eat. But then in the midst of their peace, a loud frightening scream achoed around the village. Carl quickly stood up and gazed out the window. He saw men and women come out of their houses in curiosity. But in the darkness, red lights scattered in the bushes, red lights that turned out to be the malevolent slitted eyes of Houdooms.

"Dad? What's happening?" Leaf asked in a scared tone,

"Leaf, go grab your bow and arrow," her father ordered as she obeyed and went to go fetch them. Still staring at the window, he witnessed the residents being torn up limb by limb. It was unbelievable. Questioning how the pokémon succumbed into this violent behavior, he noticed all of them were wearing the same metal collar. He saw the perpetrators in the distance. They were a whole army of trainers in black uniforms with a large red G symbol on the front of their chests. Carl grabbed a pokéball and summoned his Blastoise out. He knew if he tried to flee the house the brain-washed Houndooms would tear them up. The army of G-soldiers were invading each and every house in sight. Leaf came dashing back with her bow and arrow slung around her back,

"Dad, I'm back, what's happening? Should we go down to the basement? I smell ash, what's Blastoise doing out?" Leaf streamed out in panic, "What's happening outside? Should we go fight? Wh-" Her father bent down and grabbed her tightly by the shoulders,

"Leaf, I want you- No, I _need_ you to do something for me. Stay in the storage closet and no matter what happens, don't come out. Lay low and stay silent. Do you understand me?"

"Dad, it's a fire! The town is on fire!" Leaf exclaimed as she could see the fiery glow from the window,

"Leaf! Do you understand?" Her father repeated in a louder voice as a wide eyed Leaf nodded, "Then go! Remember, what ever happens, you are not allowed to come out of there until it is safe!" He ushered her daughter towards the closet,

"Dad, is everything going to be alright? What's going to happen to you?" She anxiously questioned,

"Leaf," he gently said as he pat her head, "Remember everything I've taught you, alright?"

"Dad?" Leaf called as she got into the room. Her father remained silent and continued smiling, "Dad? Why aren't you answering me?" Before he closed the door, he looked at his daughter with teary eyes,

"I love you sunshine,"

"W-Wait, DAD!" Leaf screamed as he shut the door. She felt her heart racing, adrenaline flowing, breaths fastening. She remained as quiet as she could be in the tiny little room. Soon she heard a loud crash; it was her front door being pummeled. Loud grunts from her father resonated. Leaf spotted a tiny little hole in the door and decided to peek through, but it was not a pleasant sight. Her father's Blastoise had been punched aside and was slumped against the wall while her father was suspended by Houndooms, "NO!" She screamed. She immediately regretted it and covered her mouth with her hand. The Houndooms reacted to her scream and started walking towards the closet,

"Hey you ugly mutts! What are you, stupid? I'm right 'ere!" She heard her father say as the Houndooms decided to ignore the cry and focused back to Carl,

"Shut up you little dirty insect!" Leaf heard one of the G-soldiers commanded as he slapped Carl's face and grabbed Carl by the shirt, "Where's the Prof's research facility?"

"What? Why are you numbskulls interested in the Prof's research- Oh...so this is what it's about. I thought Giovanni was aiming for Major Célesta, I can't believe he's going for that ridiculous myth-"

"I said shut up and give me the directions!" The G-soldier ordered as he slapped Carl once more, "Tell me! Now!"

"Yeah sure, I'll tell you. Just down the road and a little further up your ass! Phouu!" Carl sarcastically remarked as he spat into the soldier's face,

"Yuck! You filthy piece of trash! Rip him to shreds, he's like the other villagers: useless," the G-soldier said as he snapped his fingers. Summoning all his strength, Carl yanked his body from the Houndooms and began to fight off the villains. He was winning. Leaf continued watching through the little hole and hope filled her entire body. She was relieved. The G-soldier underestimated Carl's power and called for extra back up. Soon the little girl saw her father's body being decapitated in the midst of his courageous battle. His blood splattered across the walls and floor and body parts thumping on the floor. She kept both hands over her mouth while tears gushed down her shaking face. When the Houndooms had finished having their feast, the G-soldiers and pokémon moved onto the next home. The little girl fell back and tried to catch her breath. She heard the screams of pain and agony from the other side of the door. Not only that, what frightened the girl the most was the bone-cracking sounds of arms being ripped off. Leaf covered her ears and rocked back and forth,

"This is a nightmare, this is a nightmare, this is a nightmare, this is a nightmare..." she repeated to herself as she continued to rock. Even with her hands over her hands over her ears, she could still hear the horrible splitting sounds . Tears still running down her cheeks, she could feel her whole body shake from horror. She tried to wipe away the tears, but felt an unfamiliar substance under her eye. When she took a closer look at her fingers, she saw a dark crimson red stain. "This is a nightmare."


	2. Chapter 2 Six Years Later

**Chapter 2 – Six Years Later**

In this modern era, where holographic pokédexes are available at the single touch of a wristwatch, where the number of discovered pokémon have exceeded a thousand, and where the traditional methods of battling have died out, the development of the Pokémon world has progressed further than anyone ever expected. My name is Leaf Green, I'm 17 years old and I live in the New Pokémon Era.

I walked down the forest path with my trusty bow and arrow kit slung across my back. It's in these times where hunting anything was as rare as a blue moon. I decided to take a break from my hunt and sat beside a lake for a quick break. I gazed at my reflection in the water. Time has lengthened my hair which now reaches my waist, a face younger than my age, and my cyan eyes still remained the same shade. I was wearing my traditional hunter uniform: black halter corset with neon blue lining, black bishop sleeves with matching lining that starts below my shoulder, a red skirt that reached mid-thigh, a black fingerless glove on my right hand, black knee high socks and black leather boots. I refilled my water bottle and continued with my hunt. Soon, I came to a large plain field with stones and broken rubble. This was the remnants of Pallet Town. Walking down the familiar path I used to take with my father, I decided to head towards the headstones near the cliff. I plucked two pink daises nearby and put one on each gravestone. "Hey Dad, Mum...I'm back," I whispered as I stroked the graves. The idiotic grin of my father always pops into my mind whenever I think of him. Sometimes, when I feel sad, I try to imitate his loud laugh. As for my mother, I never met her. She had died after giving birth to me, doctors say it was an indirect maternal death, Dad just assumed it was just bad luck.

Speaking of idiotic people, I wonder how _they_ are doing. I remember the times when everyday I would wake up to their beckoning voices and hard pebbles thrown against my window. We would skip around the grass, play with our pokémon, run away from teachers; we were always together. I can still recall the day when they had to leave Pallet.

"_Why do you have to go?" I whined as the three of us laid on the grass,_

"_Old geezer has a new discovery in Saffron City," Gary answered as he plucked small strands of grass,_

"_My mum found a new job at Cerulean City," Red replied as he gave a small frown,_

"_I don't want you guys to leave," I said as tears started to form in my eyes,_

"_Don't cry, you cry baby," Gary teased as he lightly flicked my forehead,_

"_Gary! That's not nice!" Red retorted as he stood up with his hands on his hips,_

"_Oh shut up Ashy-boy," Gary taunted as he closed his eyes and put his hands behind his head,_

"_How would you feel if you were called a cry baby and got flicked?" Red said,_

"_You don't have the guts- ow!" Apparently, Red did have the guts. Soon Red was being chased around by Gary who was trying to flick Red back. I started to laugh at the two of them,_

"_Hey, you're laughing!" Red said as he stopped running, which resulted in Gary colliding against him,_

"_Ow!" Gary moaned again as he scratched his head, "Pfft, about time,"_

"_Hey! Let's go play by the lake!" Red suggested,_

"_Last one there is a rotten oran!" Gary shouted as he ran ahead of us,_

"_No fair!" I cried as Red and I tried to catch up._

Looking back, we were such naïve simpletons enjoying life. Why did we have to grow up? Gary was always an obnoxious boy. Despite that, he was actually a very gifted kid. He always gave the impression that he's a cold hearted jerk, but he was actually a softie on the inside. Red, on the other hand, was a more straight-forward and honest type of guy. He had a heart of gold, always putting others in front of him, and extremely considerate. Even though we were all really close friends, Gary and I had a more closer bond. Maybe it was because we were neighbors, or maybe it was because we always argued, or maybe it was because I thought he had extremely cute spiky brown hair.

"_Will you call?" I cried,_

"_Eh, maybe," Gary answered as he helped heave a cardboard box onto the truck,_

"_Promise me you'll keep in touch, Red promised before he left!"_

"_Fine, fine, fine! I promise I'll keep in touch," Gary mimicked,_

"_Good," I said as I wiped a small tear from my eye,_

"_You're not crying, are you?"  
"No..." I pouted,_

"_You're such a cry baby," he sighed as he pat my head and pulled me into a hug, "I'll call everyday so make sure you pick up, you ditz,"_

"_Really?" I exclaimed as I pulled away from the hug and looked eagerly at him,_

"_Yeah..." he said as he scratched the back of his head while his cheeks went a little pink,_

"_Ah! Whatever! Gotta go now, smell you later!" _

Then he was off. I still remember the pathetic little me balling my eyes out whilst waving as hard as I could. And I still remember the happy-go-lucky grin he gave back. I wonder where they are...if they're still alive, what they look like, what they're doing right now... . I must be stupid. I sat down and took out an old scorched picture. It was a picture of the three of us, arms around each other's shoulder, laughing and crying at the same time. If only those simple days could return back to me. I took out another photo which was more burnt than the first one, it was of Dad and Mum when they had just gotten married. Dad still had that goofy smile on his face, Mum was looking as poised as ever, such love was all contained in this one picture. How I wish they were still alive. But Giovanni won't have it that way, will he? No. He won't rest until his regime has covered the entire Pokémon World. I'm not going to let that happen. Resolved, I gather up all my stuff, send my prayers, and start to leave.

Whilst walking through the nostalgic ruin, images of the massacre flowed into my head. Decapitated skulls, broken limbs, pit holes full of blood. Now, the fields are clean with grass, moss and fungi. The places where there were once houses are now decorated with stones and weeds. As I reached the entrance of the used to be town, I gazed back once more. I could still vision the old Pallet Town: full of life, full of happiness.

"Leaf?" I snapped my head towards the voice and, out of instinct, grabbed my bow and arrow and aimed it at the stranger. But looking closer, my eyes widened and I lowered my bow,

"...Gary?"


	3. Chapter 3 The Start of the Beginning

**Chapter 3 – The Start of the Beginning**

"Gary?" I asked as I lowered my bow, "Is that really you?"

"That's my name," he replied. He was at least a head taller than me now, with a rather well toned body. He still had his signature brown spiky hair and mesmerizing bright green eyes. He was wearing a black long-sleeved shirt, military camo pants which were stuffed into black leather boots, a long beige cape that wrapped around his neck, a black shoulder pad on his right and two sheaths under his belt. In addition, I noticed the silver tear shaped penchant I gave him, back when we were children, dangling on his neck, "Leaf? Are you okay?" I snapped out of my gaze and quickly slung my bow back,

"Y-Yeah, I'm sorry," I stammered as I tried to laugh it off, "What-What are you doing here?"

"I came back to see the old place and turns out I've gotten lost," he joked as we chuckled,

"Nope, this...this is it," I sighed as I looked back, "Didn't you hear about the Pallet massacre?"

"What?" He cried with a surprised face, "Pallet massacre?"

"You might want to sit down for this. Come on, let's go to the lake." We both reached the lake, which was the only thing that stayed the same over the years, and sat beside it, "I honestly don't know where to start, but the beginning's always the best. Around a year after you left, a large number of Giovanni Soldiers raided Pallet Town. They were under his Company- Giovanni's Company- pretty sure you've heard of it. It was such an abrupt ambush that no one could react in time. They were using hypnotized Houndooms who became flesh-eating monsters. Burning every home they could see, ripping every person in sight, it was ghastly. Mr and Mrs Hender, their children, Mrs Rivera-Gonzales, Dad, everyone was dead. Everyone but me,"

"No...Leaf..." Gary sympathetically said as he placed his hand on top of mine,

"It's alright," I said as I looked down,

"How did you survive?" Gary questioned,

"My dad told me to go hide in the closet until it was safe," I explained. I could feel a small drop well in my eye, but held back my tears,

"That must've been horrible, I'm so sorry,"

"It's not your fault, don't worry about it. The only ones that needs to be sorry is Giovanni's Company," I answered back with a menacing tone,

"No, I should be sorry. I'm sorry that I had to leave you all alone to endure this," he apologized as he suddenly bent down in front of me and grabbed both of my hands,

"Gary?" I asked as I gave him a weird look,

"Leaf," he sighed, "There's so much I need to tell you. But first, I need to apologize once more. I lied when I said I didn't hear about the massacre. I did it because I wanted to hear your side of the story,"

"Couldn't you of told me that? I think I still would've told you whatever side I had," I replied with a stern face,

"No, I know you, you wouldn't," Gary said, squinting his eyes in cockiness,

"You _know_ me?" I repeated with an annoyed tone as I pulled my hands away from his and put them on my hips,

"Uh, hello? Friends since birth?" Gary answered with a sarcastic tone,

"So what? It's been over 5 years since we've last seen each other, people change," I argued,

"That's true...but I assumed you would've been suspicious- not friendly- when I said I didn't hear about the incident, oh well," Gary said in his usual cocky voice,

"Pssh, what's that suppose to mean?" I retorted with a scoff,

"Oh come on, who hasn't heard of the Pallet massacre?" He shot back as he inched his face towards mine,

"I don't know, _you_?" I bickered as I inched my face towards his. We fell silent and stared at each other's stubborn faces, we both couldn't help but burst into a fit of laughter. Despite the years we've been apart, just being with him here and now feels just like our childhood days. Suddenly we heard rustling of leaves from the bushes and out popped at least two dozen G-soldiers surrounding us.

"The hell?" Gary yelled,

"You! Girl! You're one of the survivors from Pallet, aren't you!" One of the soldiers shouted. I stood up and yelled back,

"So what if I am?"

"Well now we'll finish the job properly!" He shouted as he began to charge towards us with his small army. Each soldier was equipped with their own choice of weapon and a Houndoom. I quickly reached for Blasty and summoned him to my aid whilst Gary had taken out his fully grown Charizard,

"Is that Charmander?"

"Yup, but let's talk about this later," Gary suggested as he pulled out both his swords,

"Good idea," I agreed as I got my bow and started to shoot, "Blasty! Hydro cannon now!" As powerful shots of water pushed the soldiers back, I aimed for the remaining soldiers who were still charging at us. While Gary used the back of his swords to knock the soldiers unconscious, he yelled to his Charizard,

"Charizard, blast burn!" A large ray of fire shot from Charizard's mouth and fried most of the soldiers. Ferocious flames and strong currents were being blasted all around us, "Leaf! I need you to break the collars off the Houndooms!" As I took a closer look at the pokémon, I did notice a metal collar around each one,

"Got it!" I replied. I needed more altitude for better accuracy, so I hopped onto Charizard's back, "Remember me Charmander? Or should I say Charizard? Don't mind if I use your back for a moment, do you?" Charizard gave an agreeing grunt. I got to the highest point I could and managed to see the entire battlefield. Gary had knocked out almost half of them on his own. I wasn't going to lose to him. I started firing as many arrows I could and broke the collars. I noticed that as soon as the collars were broken, the Houndooms were free from the hypnotism. It didn't take long till we had wiped out the entire army,

"Duck!" I called as I shot an arrow towards the aggressive soldier behind Gary. He gave me nod but then he yelled,

"Behind you!" There was a G-soldier that had jumped behind me and it was too late to use my bow and arrows, so I removed my glove and incanted the words,

"_A maria de terra, da me poastestatem. Glacies Trabes_!" A cold beam shot from my hand and froze the soldier immediately, "Thanks," I said,

"You too," he said as he was slightly taken aback from my powers. I somersaulted down from Charizard and landed in front of Gary. We both smirked and high-fived. We had taken down the entire G-soldier army in a snap,

"Good job Blasty," I praised as I gave him an Oran berry and pat his head,

"So this is Blasty?" Gary asked as he came over with his Charizard, "Last I remember him, he was this tiny lil Squirtle," Blasty gave an annoyed grunt as all of us laughed, "Alright! Alright! I'm sorry!"

"Charman- I mean Charizard, seems a lot more different than when I last saw him," I said as I went over to Charizard and stroked his neck, "Thanks for letting me hop on your back,"

"So, new ice powers eh? That's new,"

"Yeah, learned them off Brycen when I was under his wing," I explained, "What about you?"  
"Me? Just a little bit of electricity, can't control it as well as you though so I don't normally use it. Got these dual swords as well, got the skills pounded into me by Chuck. Come on, let's get out of here," Gary said as he jumped onto Charizard's back. I pursed my lips, unconvinced, "There's space right here next to daddy," I sighed and gave a chuckle,

"What are you talking about? I have business with Giovanni, I have my own places to go,"

"Exactly why it'll be faster if we go there together," he said,

"...Wh-What?"

"I need to deal with Giovanni as well. So why don't we just team up?" He asked in a persuasive tone,

"Is the famous Gary Oak, requesting help?" I teased as I crossed my arms,

"Oh please, I can just see you pleading for me in your eyes," he sneered,

"Yeah right!" I scoffed,

"Come on," he said as he let out his hand for me. Still refusing, I shook my head,

"The road I'm going on is death and danger," I warned,

"Well then we must be going on the same path," he replied with his signature sneer, "Come on, just take it," I sighed in defeat and said,

"Return Blasty!" Once Blasty transformed into a red spirit and popped back into his pokéball, I hooked it back to my skirt and joined Gary,

"We need to make a small pit-stop at my gym in Viridian City, Charizard, fly!" Gary said as we swooped towards the sky,

"Whoa!" I cried as I clung onto Gary,

"Ha ha ha!" He laughed as we soared through the sky. I remember I thought that maybe it wouldn't be too bad. But when my stomach started to disagree with me, I also remembered that I have a problem with flying.

**Author's Notes**

Hahaha, I actually wasn't going to do this kind of thing (author notes that is), but I think I'll use this space to reply to reviewers and extra bit and pieces.

Yes, I have to admit, the previous chapters were greatly influenced by The Hunger Games. But hey, it's a good series (and the movie was awesome too!). But thank you so much for reviewing! I'm taking my time with my chapters, but hopefully I won't be making you wait too long!

Just editing through this chapter makes me cringe, I think it's because I'm not used to editing my own work.

Au revoir!

- TheYellowCup


	4. Chapter 4 Lost in Viridian Forest

**Chapter 4 – Viridian Forest: The First Obstacle**

We soared through the blue clear sky, swishing through big puffy white clouds over tens of thousands of feet high above the ground, it was horrible. "Gary...Gary...GARY!" I screamed as I tightened my grip around him,

"WHAT?!" He yelled back,

"I'M GETTING AIR SICK," I cried,

"HOW?!"

"YOU KNOW I WAS NEVER GOOD WITH BIRDS!"

"THEN WHY DID YOU GET ON? AND CHARIZARD ISN'T A BIRD! ...HE'S A DRAGON SLASH LIZARD," he screamed back,

"OH BE QUIET! LAND NOW UNLESS YOU WANT MY PUKE IN YOUR FACE," I threatened,

"Oh for the love of- Charizard let's land before it becomes puke fest of the year," I heard Gary say to Charizard as we started to quickly descend. Once we had touched ground, I jumped off immediately and refrained myself from throwing up, "Never good with birds...pssh!" Gary sneered whilst he petted Charizard,

"Hey, you know what happens, don't make me remind you," I replied as I finally pulled myself together, "Where are we?" As I examined my surroundings more closely, we were lost in deep and dark woodlands,

"We're in the Viridian Forest," Gary answered as Charizard returned to his pokéball,

"Why'd you send Charizard back?"

"Were you hoping we would start flying up again?" Gary sarcastically remarked, "Anyways, Charizard needs his rest,"

"Then how are we going to get out of here?" I asked as I put my hand on my hip. Through my years of exploration, it was known to me that the Viridian Forest was a native maze where pokédex holders get easily lost inside. Some don't even find their way out.

"Come on, I know the way out of here," Gary said as he started bushwhacking some shrubs; creating a path,

"Wait for me!" I called as I followed Gary. We had spent a few hours trekking through thick bushes, although it felt as though we were just walking around in circles. But Gary's confidence reassured me. However I suddenly noticed something. Whilst we were exploring, we had passed this intriguing tree that had a stripy trunk, so I decided to mark a little triangle on it. After a few minutes later, we passed the same tree with a little triangle indented on it. I looked at Gary, who was still "certain" he knew the exit, "Gary...are you sure you know your way?"

"Definitely," he quickly replied as I sensed slight urgency in his tone,

"Gary. Don't lie. We've passed this area twice," I stated as I stopped walking and folded my arms. Gary didn't answer me but continued to break briers, "You don't know the way out, do you?" This time it was him that stopped in his tracks, I even saw a slight shudder run up his spine,

"W-Well..." he stammered,

"We've been mindlessly walking around for hours, haven't we?!" I angrily exclaimed,

"Well, maybe not _hours_," he scoffed. I sighed in frustration and rubbed my face. I sat on a nearby rock and massaged my temples, wondering what our next plan of action should be. I peered up at Gary who was crouched down plucking some weeds. We were still lost. I figured that if Gary couldn't lead, perhaps I could. I walked back to the marked tree and scouted around, there were no signs of light or open space. I thought that if we continued going one way, we would surely end up out of the forest, however even that would take at least a day or so and night was approaching. It wasn't good enough. I knew I understood a lot more on jungle survival than to come to that conclusion. After running through thoughts in my brain, I remembered that the exit of the Viridian Forest was north-west. I tapped on my PokéWatch and initiated the HPS (Holographic Pokédex System), "It's not exactly time for capturing pokémon," Gary smugly said as he raised an eyebrow,

"It's not exactly the time to be making jokes, now is it?" I retorted as I continued scrolling through the utilities until I found the compass. Wondering why we didn't think of using it before amazed me. I started heading towards the appropriate direction and signaled Gary to follow, "Come along Christopher Columbus, let's get out of here,"

"Oh look at whose making the jokes now."

For the next few minutes we were swiftly going through a vaguely built path, when all of a sudden we heard a girl's scream for help, "What was that?" I asked as I looked around us,

"Well, _obviously_, it's a scream from a _cat_," Gary snidely answered as I gave him a look,

"Oh ha-ha, hilarious. Someone needs help, let's go,"

"Why? We need to get out of here,"

"We always have time to do that, whoever screamed might not even live to see tomorrow," I said as I grabbed his wrist and started running towards the direction from where the scream came from. We were bulldozing through trees and shrubs until we came to a large clearing. We saw a young girl who had long bright blonde hair that was tied up in a ponytail, brown eyes and pale skin. She wore a long black turtle neck shirt, a short yellow dress with green stitching on top, black tights and brown leather knee-high boots,

"Please! Please help me!" She pleaded to us as she was being cornered by a bunch of G-soldiers who were equipped with Houndooms, "Get away from me!" I took out my pokéball and out popped Jiggly while Gary took out his Scizor,

"Jiggle, use double-edge, aim for their collars!"

"Metal claw all of their collars, Scizor!" We both said as we got our own weapons and ran into battle. I dashed towards the girl in distress and came to her aid, while Gary took out most of the soldiers surrounding her. I pelted a few more arrows and made sure the girl was alright,

"Are you okay?" I asked as I bent down in front of her,

"Y-Yes, I'm fine, but is he?" She asked as she pointed towards Gary. A gang of soldiers were toppling over him, but he was holding his stance together well,

"He'll be fine, "I reassured as Gary let out a large shout and pushed all the soldiers off of him, "But you have to get out of here, it's not-" just before I could finish my sentence, a G-soldier had come running towards me. I heard his footsteps, turned round and shot three arrows into his chest, "-safe..."

"You're probably right," she murmured as she got up,

"Stay behind those bushes until everything's calmed down," I said as I gave her a little push and resumed to fighting. Jiggly and Scizor had managed to take out a lot of the collars so the field was covered with unconscious Houndooms. Two soldiers came running my way, one with a sword and the other with twin knives. The latter one threw both her knives at me but I bent backwards and let the knives fly straight across me. When I pulled myself back forward, the other soldier swung his sword down at me, but I fended it off with my bow. I pushed the soldier back and used that momentum to jump up and perform a backwards flip, whilst I fired two arrows at the G-soldiers. But there wasn't a moment to relax, as soon as I landed back down, several other soldiers came at me with vicious attacks. Soon Gary and I were back to back,

"Tired?" He teased,

"Not at all," I replied, as it was obvious both of us were out of breath,

"Pretty imprecise aims there,"  
"At least I wasn't the one who was being crushed,"

"Whatever, I'm on 22," he stated as I shot an arrow at a soldier behind Gary,

"23," I responded as I raised an eyebrow and gave him a cheeky smile. A few minutes later, we managed to take down most of the G-soldiers, assuming the rest ran away, "Hey! It's safe now! You can come out!" The little girl popped her head from the top of the trees and jumped down,

"Thank you guys so much," she said as she clasped her hands together and began bowing down repeatedly. Both of us chuckled slightly and scratched the back of our heads,

"It's no problem, why were they attacking you anyways?" I inquired,

"They were trying to take away my pokémon but I refused, so they started to attack me and I screamed. Then you two came to my rescue and I don't know how I can tahnk you! If there's anything I can do, please tell me," she answered as she began to bow again,

"Ha ha ha, it's really nothing! You don't need to bow so many times," I laughed as Gary smirked behind me, "Although, we would love to take you up on that offer,"

"What is it?" The girl eagerly asked. I crept over to her, put one arm around her shoulder and said,

"Got any extra pokédollars on ya?"

"Sorry but all the dollars I have are back at my home," she stammered,

"Pfft, that's no fun. Where's home?" I asked as I walked back to Gary who gave me "really?" face. I shrugged in return and stuck my tongue out,

"Not too far from here," she answered with a smile. A bulb burned brightly in my head. I clapped my hands together and turned round to face her,

"That's brilliant! Y'know, I just thought of how you could pay us back," I hinted with a playful tone,

"What? What is it?"

"To be honest, we were actually on our way to Viridian City but we got lost and now that it's almost dark, we need somewhere to stay, do you happen to know a place?" I said,

"Hm..." she pondered as I was hoping she would take the hint, "Oh! Why don't you guys stay at my home?"

"Oh, no...we couldn't _possibly_ intrude," I insisted,

"Please! I insist! I insist! I mean, after all, both of you saved my life. This is the least I could do, I can even take you through the forest to Viridian City tomorrow!" She persuaded,

"Oh..._well_...if you _really_ insist," I replied with a grin. I honestly didn't enjoy playing around with naïve girls like herself, but it was just an old habit popping out. I heard Gary give a sigh in the background and I cocked my head towards him with a death stare.

Soon, after walking through a few more bushes, we reached a quaint little house. It was a good, old fashioned cottage, gleaming with coziness. "This is my home, sorry if it isn't much," she excused as we entered through the door. The interior was just as cozy as the exterior. Gary and I followed the girl through her house, "My name is Amarillo del Bosque Verde, but you can call me Yellow,"

"So, Yellow…" I said as I observed her comfy living room, "can we, um, can we see the house?"

"Oh yes! Follow me!" She said as she signaled us to come over, "this is the kitchen right here, next to the living room. The bathroom is just down the hall to the right, and there's a study room right opposite. Upstairs are where all the bedrooms are and another bathroom, why don't we go up?"

"Yes! Let's!" I eagerly exclaimed, but then I realized how rash I was being and stepped behind Yellow, "I mean, after you of course," Gary gave a grunt which led me to give him another deadly stare,

"Alright then, let's go!" Yellow cheerfully said as she led us up the stairs, "right here is my room, over here is the bathroom and here's the guest room!" When she opened the door, the guest room was an adequately large room, with hard wooden flooring- just like the rest of the house- white walls, two wooden framed glass windows, an oak closet, a furry rug in the middle of the room and a double bed,

"Well this looks absolutely brilliant," I complimented as I waited for Yellow to continue the tour, "so where's the other guest room?"

"I'm sorry?" Yellow said in confusion as she tilted her head in confusion,

"Don't you have another guest room?" I rephrased,

"This…is the only one I have,"

"W-W-Wait, does this mean we're going to have to sleep in the _same_ bed?" I whined as I pointed to Gary,

"Aren't you two together?" Yellow responded as we shook our heads, "Oh! I'm so sorry! I thought you two were a couple, both of you just seemed so close," Yellow started to frantically bow down multiple times whilst apologizing,

"Leaf, calm down, it's fine," Gary cooly said as he went into the room and slumped onto the bed,

"A-Are you sure? I could give you my room, I'll sleep on the couch," Yellow offered. Just as I was about to take it, Gary swiftly grumbled,

"It's perfect," he closed his eyes, put his arms behind his head and begun to try to sleep. I sighed. At that moment I knew Gary was right, and so I gave up trying to demand any more. I gave a sincere smile at Yellow and nodded my head in agreement,

"It is perfect," I quietly whispered. Yellow smiled back and slowly closed the door. I put my bow and arrow down against the dresser, then placed my hands on my hips,

"So," I sighed again, "how are we join to do this?" Gary slowly opened one eye and looked at me. He got up from the bed, took a pillow and a sheet and placed them on the floor and continued his slumber. I felt quite guilty, "Gary come on, I can't let you do that,"

"Just go to bed," he murmured. I gave a shy smile. He was the same old chivalrous Gary. Just then, Yellow popped her head in,

"Oh, um, I'm, um, I'm sorry to interrupt but, I prepared a hot bath. So if one of you want to take it now…" she explained as she signaled towards the bathroom. I gazed at the dozed off Gary and replied,

"I think Gary's going to pass, he's just a little sleepy. I'll take it though, you went through all that trouble anyways,"

"It was no problem! I also have a pair of pajamas for you to wear, that is if you want it,"

"That sounds lovely." Soon I found myself feeling absolutely relaxed after a nice warm bath. I dressed into Yellow's white tank top with blue shorts afterwards. Once I finished thanking Yellow and wished her a good night, I slipped back into the guest room. I quickly snuggled into bed and fell asleep.

_A bloody corpse lay on the black ground in front of me. He was reaching out to me, with his hairy hand covered in crimson red. "Leaf…" he moaned as he crawled closer. Suddenly Houndooms started to creep from the darkness, frothing at the mouth. Those blood shot eyes, it frightened me to the core. I screamed, I screamed as loud as I could for help- for anyone. "Leaf…come out of the closet…help me…" the corpse said as I realized who it was. I reached my back, expecting to grab my bow and arrow, but there was nothing there. Suddenly one of the Houndooms pounced forward. It's large sharp white teeth sandwiching my face._

I woke up in a cold sweat with my heart pounding like a thousand drums. My throat felt dry and rough. I could feel dried up tears on my face. Just then, I felt two hands wrap around my waist, a chin resting on my shoulder, and a soft whisper,

"Sh…it's alright, you're fine. You're fine."

"Breakfast time!" I heard a voice yell. As I started to wake up, I could hear little footsteps getting louder. Suddenly the door swung open, the abrupt noise made my body sit up, "Morning! It's- oh!" My vision was still a little hazy. I rubbed my eyes and saw yellow by the door with her hands clasped on her mouth. She had a surprised yet embarrassed look. I felt a slight weight on the bed and as I looked to my right, Gary was there!

"AHHHHHHH!" I screamed as I fell off the side of the bed whilst backing away. Gary's eyes shot open and he quickly sat up, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING- WHAT _WERE_ YOU DOING IN MY BED?!"

"For heaven's sake, it's early in the morning, quit your yapping," Gary drearily replied as he scratched the back of his head,

"I-I'm sorry!" Yellow said as she gave a little bow while her cheeks turned a little pink, "u-um, breakfast is ready. It's in the kitchen. On the table. Downstairs. Just come down, when you're um, ready," she stuttered and quickly left the room. I stayed on the ground, still shocked, and stared at Gary who was still scratching his hair,

"Are you just going to sit there and stare at me?" He sarcastically remarked as he sat on the edge of the bed, "and in case you're still wondering, I didn't do anything,"

"T-Then why were you in my bed?" I questioned as I slowly stood up. He looked at me with an are-you-serious face and sighed,

"Just forget it, I'm going to go have breakfast, see you downstairs," he groaned and left the room. Flushed and embarrassed, I calmed myself down and started to change into my regular clothing. After folding Yellow's pajamas away, I headed for the kitchen. When I walked down the hallway, I could see Yellow sitting opposite Gary with a cup of hot chocolate in her hand whilst Gary was stuffing his face with cereal. I awkwardly joined them at the table,

"Oh! You're here!" Yellow greeted as she got up from her seat, "what do you want for breakfast? I have oran berry cereal, milk, aprijuice, puffins, honey bread, what are you feeling?"

"Just a glass of milk is good for me, thank you," I replied as Yellow nodded her head and checked out her fridge,

"Looks like I've run out of Moomoo milk, I'll be right back," she said as she went out the back of the house. An awkward silence slipped in between Gary and I. We happened to catch each other's gaze and quickly looked away. However this didn't stop Gary from munching on his oran berries. I took another look at him: pieces of oran berries were decorated on his cheeks and he was having a difficult time trying to bite the honey bread, I couldn't contain my laughter. He was just like a little kid. But in the midst of my laughter, a small and embarrassing snort came out. This time he was laughing at me, but since we knew both of us were being so silly, we just laughed with each other. When we calmed down, I told him,

"Hey, I'm sorry. I should of had more father in you,"

"Nah, I wouldn't blame you. If I saw a guy by my side in the morning, I'd freak out too," I giggled,

"Ha ha ha, this is why I love you, no matter what happens between us, we manage to get back on good terms in no time,"

"Ha ha ha, I'm sorry, did I just hear you say you 'loved' me?" Gary pointed out as I suddenly realized it myself. Before I could say anything I was saved by Yellow's return,

"Oh! Yellow! Look! It's Yellow! You're back!" I nervously exclaimed,

"Here's some Moomoo milk," she said as she handed me a bottle,

"Thanks Yellow," I replied as I took a sip,

"Careful there Moomoo, don't snort on your own milk," Gary teased,

"You watch yourself too Snorlax, you're being attacked by swarms of oran berries on your face," I retorted as all three of us laughed.

After eating a fulfilling breakfast, we set off back into the woods. Gary and I followed Yellow through the thick forest until we finally came to a clearing, "We're here!" Yellow announced as she pushed away some shrubs. In front of us was a large entrance to a very cramped and urban city,

"Thanks Yellow," Gary said as he grabbed my hand and started to run towards the city, "we're kind of in a rush so see you next time!" I looked back and waved goodbye to Yellow. She waved back and gave the most heartwarming smile I've ever seen. It made me feel quite mean just ditching her like this.

"Pick up the pace Slowbro,"

"Shut up," I replied as we plunged into the big city.


	5. Chapter 5 The Swordsman

**Chapter 5 - The swordsman **

Sprinting through the city, Gary was bolting through alleyways, zipping past roads, cutting around corners, he was going so fast I thought I was going to puke. But then we suddenly came to a halt, "Oof!" I said as I collided against Gary's backs, "what's with-" before I could finish complaining, I looked at Gary who was as pale as a sheet. I wondered what flushed all the color away from his face so I looked in front of us. There was a broken water fountain with crushed pipes still sprouting water out, two rigid staircases on each side of the fountain, and white and orange bricks scattered all around. I cover my mouth in awe, the place was just absolutely awful. As if there was a giant who decided to do the river dance. I noticed Gary's fingers curl up into a tight fist that started to shake,

"It's Giovanni…" he gritted through his teeth,

"What? How?" I asked as I put my hand on his shoulder,

"This is the fifth damn time he's done this!" He yelled as he kicked a nearby brick and jerked my hand away. He sat down on a stable piece of stone from the broken fountain and started to explain, "it all started a few months ago. He had sent me a letter, threatening me that if I didn't join his forced as one of the scientists, he would destroy my gym. Of course I said no, and I was prepared for his ambushes, but somehow he still manages to get by my security,"

"Holy…I'm so sorry," I sympathized as I sat next to him,

"No, the only person who will be sorry is Giovanni. That's why I need to go look for him too," Gary explained with a determined look,

"Gary?" We both heard a voice suddenly call. Our heads snapped to our right and we saw a boy, who looked around our age, with jet black hair that was slicked back and brown eyes. He wore a red dress shirt, a black polished blazer on top, a matching black tie, dark pants and shiny grey shoes. Slung around his back was a huge sword that could've been the exact same height as him. We both wondered who this mysterious stranger was.

"That's my name. What's yours," Gary retorted as I got behind Gary,

"You don't remember me? Well i have changed quite a lot over the years," the boy said as he started walking towards us with a goofy grin. Once he was only a few feet away, Gary raised his arm slightly to protect me, "You _really_ don't remember me?" he repeated as he still approached us,

"Of course I do, just look at the smile on my face," Gary answered with a frown,

"Ha ha ha! Witty as ever," the stranger said, "It's me, Red! Red Ketchum!" We couldn't believe it. The childish boy we knew who would whine every time he didn't get his turn on the swings turned out to be a tall and muscular swordsman!

"Red? Is that really you?" I asked as I went past Gary's arm and walked towards him,

"Ooh! Gary! Didn't know you had a companion, I thought the Great Gary worked alone," Red said as he cocked an eyebrow, "and she's a pretty one too! Are you guys together?"

"Red!" I shouted as I slapped him lightly on the shoulder, "it's me! Leaf! Leaf Green!"

"Whoa! No way! Leaf? You've changed so much!" Red said as he returned to the goofy boy I knew, "Gary come here and give your old friend a hug!" As the two guys hugged, Gary asked,

"What are you doing here anyways?"

"Oh now that you mention it, I came looking for you,"

"Well you've found me,"

"A few days ago I was reading up some articles in a library and I came across an extremely devastating piece of history. Now I'm not sure when the last time you guys went back to Pallet was, but it's-"

"Is this about the Pallet Massacre?" I interrupted,

"Yeah! How do you know about it?" Red asked in surprise,

"She witnessed it first hand," Gary said as he put his arm around my shoulder,

"Oh no, Leaf, I'm so sorry. I should have never left," Red apologized as he grabbed both my hands. He was so close I could see small little tears build up in his baby brown eyes,

"It's fine," I reassured. I remember thinking that a boy like him, his whole appearance doesn't suit his personality, "It's in the past, and besides, there's nothing we can do about it,"

"Apart from take revenge," Gary added as he stuffed his hands in his pockets,

"I'm assuming you guys have heard about Giovanni then," Red said in a serious tone as he let go of my hands,

"Of course we have, he's the little scum bag who ruined my wonderfully built gym five damn times," Gary spat out. All three of us fell silent for a moment as we stared at the ruined gym,

"Come on, we're childhood friends who've reunited after what, five, seven years?" Red said, "we should be rejoicing!"

"I guess…" I murmured. Red put his arms around me and Gary,

"I know a great café that serves the best berry juice," Red insisted as he dragged us towards town. Soon, we reached a quaint café that looked rather out of place. Whilst the city was urban and modern filled with blocks of skyscrapers, the café was stuck in the middle between two large business towers. It was made out of wood and had a very cozy and comfy bed and breakfast feel to it,

"This is the place? Even though I live here, I've never come across this café before," Gary said as we observed the restaurant,

"Yup, come on, let's go inside," Red said as he ushered us in. As soon we went through the door, a young lady sitting behind the counter lifted her head. Noticing there were customers, she immediately shut her magazine, put on a commercial smile and welcomed us,

"Welcome to Misty's Little Garden!" She was a bubbly waitress with short orange hair that curled up at the ends, she was wearing a black short sleeved collared blouse, a dark blue skirt that was mid-thigh, a blue patterned waist apron and black heels, "Oh! Red! I was wondering what happened to you when you didn't come during your usual hour,"

"Hey Misty, just meeting up with some old friends," Red replied, "Guys, any berry juice your choose here is to die for," He and Misty started to laugh while Gary and I exchanged weird glances,

"Are these your friends?" Misty asked as she looked at me than back at Red,

Childhood friends actually, just bumped into them on the street," Red explained,

"Wonderful! Come on I'll take you to your usual booth," she said as she grabbed a few menus from the side and went further into the restaurant. As we walked through the place, it was a very private cafe which had a small amount of customers. Misty halted at a particular booth, "Here you guys go, call me over when you're ready to order." The three of us got ourselves comfortable in the booth: I sat in the middle whilst the guys sat beside me. We flipped through the menu and checked out what they had,

"So Red, you seem well acquainted with _Misty_," I teased as I covered my mouth with the menu and gave him a cheeky look,

"Oh yeah, we go way back as well. She's my ex," Red bluntly said,

"She's your ex? Isn't that a little awkward?" I asked as I put the menu down on the table,

"Nice," Gary said as he lifted his hand whilst the two high-fived. I rolled my eyes,

"Not really actually," Red answered as he scratched his head, "We're really good friends so it's cool,"

"Ah, i see," I said as I took another look at the menu. Once we had decided on our orders, Red called Misty over,

"I'll get an omelette with ketchup," Gary said,

"Mmhm," Misty answered as she scribbled down on her notepad,

"I'll take my usual," Red said,

"Of course Red, haha," she laughed as she wrote it down on her notepad as well,

"And I'll have a pecha berry juice, since it's to die for haha," I said as I tried to join in the laughter,

"Yeah, you want to take the berry juice right? Well you seem like someone who can just have whatever she wants anyways so I guess that drink suits you just fine," she suddenly spat out, "well if that's all, then thank you and please wait for your meals," she snatched the menus away from me and stalked off,

"She didn't even write down my order…" I pointed out,

"Don't worry, Misty's very good at memorizing orders," Red reassured. After a few minutes we were talking about the good old days back in Pallet,

"And remember the time Mr. Bough got so mad that he started throwing little chunks of pinup berries at us?" Gary said,

"Yeah, and it was his loss because we ate every piece he sent at us!" I said as the three of us laughed, "Oh! Oh! Oh! And remember the time Red wet his pants in kindergarten?"

"How could I forget?" Gary said,

"Hey! In my defense, I was young and I didn't know how to control my bladder yet okay? I was a slow learner," Red replied as both of us continued laughing, "Well…oh I know! Remember the time Leaf confessed to Brock?"

"Hey! I'm a feisty girl okay?" I retorted,

"You liked _Brock_?" Gary asked as he raised an eyebrow,

"Yeah, I thought he was kind of cute. Why? Are you _jealous_?" I teased,

"What? No! Who would be jealous?" Gary snapped back,

"A lot of _normal_ men, unlike you,"

"Well maybe I'm just _special_,"

"Uh, yeah, special like catching a magikarp in water,"

"Whatever," Gary finally said as we both stopped with a huff, "Gotta go take a leak,"

"Same here, drank too much this morning," Red said as both of them headed to the toilet. As I waited for them, Misty suddenly popped out of nowhere and squished right next to me,

"Listen here _Leaf_- or whatever you name is. I don't know what kind of _relationship_ you once had with Red, but you sure as hell won't be _having_ whatever you please,"

"What?" I said with a repulsed look on my face,

"I don't know what he's told you about me, but he swears I was the best girlfriend he ever had. And I'm not going to let that title be taken away from me by some little shrew with sticks, got that?"

"Um, _excuse me_?! This is my first time meeting Red after almost six years. And why in the world would I be trying to 'have' Red? He's not a possession, he's a human being for Arceus' sake! How heartless are you? And girl, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't even have to break a sweat from taking your so-called title," I replied as I crossed my arms and pursed my lips,

"…Whatever," she mumbled as she flushed red with embarrassment, "Well it doesn't matter! If you try anything, I will personally have _you_ made into the next berry juice someone orders," and that was the last thing she could say before she ran back to her post as we could see Red and Gary come out of the restroom,

"What was Misty doing?" Red asked. In the background, I could see the glaring eyes of Misty the Crazed Monster darting right at me,

"Just some trivial girl talk," I brushed off, "Y'know our drinks aren't here yet. Mind asking Misty if she could check on it?"

"Oh yeah sure! Hey Misty!" Red called out as Misty came over with her fake attitude, fake smile and fake face,

"Yes! How may I help you?" She asked with her flashy smile,

"Do you mind checking up on our orders?" Red requested,

"Of course! Carl must be up in the clouds thinking about that time with Sally, remember?" Ha ha! The café was never the same!" Misty said as they laughed- alone. I decided to have a little laugh of my own. I linked my arm with Red's and purposely said,

"Oh Red! You've gotten so much more cuter than I remember!"

"Heh, well puberty does do wonders," Red proudly said as he scratched the back of his head,

"But you're so _muscular_ now," I added as I began to feel his bisects. From the corner of my eye, I could just see Misty heating up with anger on the inside,

"Well I have been working out recently," Red replied as he started enjoying the attention,

"Oh you're _so_ tough!" I said as I gently pat his cheek, "You could just squeeze me into berry juice!"

"What? No! That's horrible!" Red exclaimed,

"You're right! Don't know what came over me, ha ha… . So what if someone did? What would you do?" I pouted,

"I would squeeze them a hundred times worse!" Red cried. I snapped my head towards Misty who was standing a few feet away from us, with fists that looked like they were about to explode,

"Don't you have some orders to check up on, Kirsty?" I reminded. Misty's eyes widened and I just smirked at her with my arms crossed. After a short glaring contest, she gritted through her teeth,

"It's Misty…"

"Whatever. Can you please go back into the kitchen and check on our orders please," I replied as she stomped away,

"What was that about?" Gary finally said,

"Nothing, just a little more girl talk," I replied, "Anyway, there's something that's been bothering me,"

"What is it?" Red inquired,

"Why is Giovanni doing all this? What's his aim?"

"Actually there have been some rumors flying around about that," Gary said, "Apparently he's trying to create the Myth of Madness, a myth that creates a pokémon even more powerful than Arceus,"

"But the ingredients for it are rather difficult, he needs to collect different parts of different legendaries, doesn't he?" Red asked,

"Yeah, that's right. That's why he tried to recruit me, there were some files created by my old man that he needed deciphering in order to find out some of the ingredients," Gary explained,

"That's why he came to Pallet Town!" I exclaimed as I slammed my palms on the table and stood up from my seat. Red and Gary's face were puzzled, "The Pallet Massacre! Don't you guys remember the reason why Gary moved? It was because Prof. Oak had just finished one of his projects and was moving onto his next discovery. He had left the finished project at his lab at Pallet Town, and that finished project must've been those files!"

"So what do we do now?" Red asked as I sat back down,

"Well now that we know his objective, we have to stop him don't we?" Gary said as he gave a smirk. I returned the smile,

"That was always the plan," I replied,

"Hey! If you guys are going after Giovanni then I'm coming along as well!"

"Are you sure?" I asked,

"You're putting your life not he line here buddy," Gary added,

"Yes I know. I should've mentioned this earlier, but the reason why I found out about the Pallet Massacre was because Giovanni's Company had ambushed my home a few weeks ago and kidnapped my mother to be his wife," I let out a small gasp. I couldn't believe Mrs. Ketchum was captured! I still remember when we were children, every Friday afternoon she would've baked us some old fashioned razz berry pies for us after we had finished playing in the lake. I still remember whenever the boys excluded me from their activities, Mrs. Ketchum would always be there with a smile and cheer me up. She was the mother figure I looked up to. Hearing someone so close to me being captured just added more oil to the fire. "After the incident, I planned to take my mother back. But I knew I couldn't do it alone, and I recently heard that you were the new gym leader of Viridian. So I decided I'd stop by and ask you to join me. But ha, it looks like I'm the one whose asking to join," I gave a small smile to Red and ruffled his hair a little. He returned the smile, but his eyes didn't mean the same. I could see sadness clouding his pupils. I put my hand on Red's,

"Don't worry, we'll rescue your mother and defeat Giovanni," I placed my other hand on Gary's hand and looked at him, "okay?" All of us nodded our heads in agreement, "Now, if my ears haven't deceived me, I overheard that table over there mention seeing Giovanni in Johto,"

"What are we waiting for then?" Red shouted as he stood up with excitement, "Let's go!"


End file.
